cant decide...glue up panel or plywood?

[martin fleming]

So I'm building a fancy bed for a customer out of 8/4 and 4/4 alder, rustic stuff with filled in knots.
The headboard is a whopping 4 x 10' thing. Im debating knotty alder 3/4 ply or gluing up eight 6" boards of 4/4. Since these boards need to be ten ft long I'm really hesitant as this would be a big time drain at the least or a big snafu at the worst. Going with plywood would be much easier, of course, but would not be an exact match to the character of the rest of the bed. Thought about this would be greatly appreciated.

[Peter Quinn]

Shop sawn veneer, plywood panel, worst of both worlds in terms of time but best performance/aesthetics mix. Got a big vacuum bag?

[Mike Henderson]

With veneer on something like Baltic birch you can do some really amazing visual things. There's lots of choices in veneer - just go to a web site like Certainly Wood or B&B Rare Woods.

Mike

[Jamie Buxton]

A headboard that features a 4'x10' plane of wood? That'd be easy to build in plywood, but looks a bit boring in my mind's eye. I'd be wanting to break it up a bit -- like building it frame-and-panel style, with multiple panels. The frame parts would be solid lumber. The panels could be either solid lumber (my choice), or plywood.

[scott vroom]

I recently completed a solid hardwood 10' x 30" x 1.125 desktop slab. Technically it was no more difficult than making a smaller panel....same steps just scaled up in size. The biggest problem was dealing with the weight....I started with rough 5/4 Sapele which has a density of 41 lbs/cu ft. The final glue up (before trimming) weighed about 100 lbs. Alder has a much lower density (23 lbs/cu ft) so your 4' x 10' x .75" trimmed panel would weight about 57 lbs....definitely manageable assuming you're in decent physical shape, or have a helper. I jointed on an 8" x 72" table using infeed and outfeed rollers, and planed on a 15" also with the rollers. Not difficult at all really. I did 2 glue ups of 2 boards each, planed each glue up, then did a final glue up using cauls to keep the glue line as flat as possible. I used my table saw and extension table for the glue ups...worked out great.

My personal preference would be to avoid plywood and go for a solid hardwood solution. Just my 2 cents worth.

[martin fleming]

Yes, I agree, kinda boring, but my customer wants simple and clean. Big flat plane of headboard...I guess that kind of answers the question. Since it is simple, the wood should really pop, which means something other than plywood.

[J.R. Rutter]

Check availability of 10-12' alder before you commit, unless you will be doing butt joints in the inner portion. I am in alder central and rarely see material over 10'. And you can count on end cracks.

I have seen some interesting rustic headboards where people have resawn lumber or even used pallet wood and glued shorter pieces onto a substrate - like long tiles. This would let you glue a few pieces at a time and use weights for clamps. The slightly uneven surface would suit the rustic look, IMHO. Just be sure to do a layer of something on the back side to keep it flattish.

[Fred Heenie]

I would have two concerns about planks or boards. I do think the result would be visually better than plywood, but alder lumber length and width may come up short. And then Alder lumber is inclined to be kind of squirrely too. MDO or Classic core with a veneer overlay would probably be my choice

[Jim Matthews]

http://www.buyappleply.com/

Ask for samples.
Finish to match the rest of the project.

Go with the match you like best.
Panels that large will be subjected to stresses
other than just seasonal ones, if you follow me...

[keith micinski]

I'm not sure why you would consider anything other then plywood for a panel that big. It is actually the better product to use and with a little thought there is no reason it can't look as good as solid wood glued up.

[martin fleming]

You folks all have good points...but, like much of life, no simple answer! I think I'm going to finish up some knotty alder samples and show the client and let her decide. Thanks for the help.

[J.R. Rutter]

I just realized that it would be simpler and easier to just screw through the back of plywood into planks so that they can float a bit. This would let you butt ends to get the 10 ft. Anyway, have fun and good luck.

[Prashun Patel]

Even if you do a large piece of plywood, you'd have to conceal the edges somehow. My vote is to do frame and panel(s). I think there's a way to make it look clean as the customer wants, without being boring. I'd sketch out some options of how you'd do it with plywood and frames, or veneer.

If they really want planks, are they averse to tightly spaced slats? That might be the easiest and simplest looking of all.

[scott vroom]

I'm not sure why you would consider anything other then plywood for a panel that big. It is actually the better product to use and with a little thought there is no reason it can't look as good as solid wood glued up.

I gotta disagree with that statement. If you were making a large dining table you'd use plywood rather than solid wood?

[Jim Matthews]

I gotta disagree with that statement. If you were making a large dining table you'd use plywood rather than solid wood?

If the panel in the headboard is captured between rails and stiles,
plywood will move very little with the seasons.

Table tops are built with button fixtures to accommodate movement.
Captured panels, as in doors may not be possible in this application.

I like JR's solution, above.
It combines a known fix, with the client's specification.

[keith micinski]

I gotta disagree with that statement. If you were making a large dining table you'd use plywood rather than solid wood?

I must have misread the original post, I could have sworn he said he was making a headboard and never once mentioned it doubling as a tabletop.

[Justin Ludwig]

Plywood alder does not hold light stains like solid alder (knotty or clear). Plywood alder/knotty alder will stain with a much redder hue because of the plywood glue. Keep that in mind if you plan on lacquering or sealing with a clear poly.

Other than that, I think the overall design would mitigate my approach to using ply or not.

[John TenEyck]

As Peter recommended, I'd use shop sawn veneer over BB plywood. Looks like solid wood, because it is, with none of the drawbacks. And because it's made from the same wood as the rest of the project, it will take stain and finish the same way. I also agree with others that said a panel that large will look incredibly boring. I'd show the client some alternative sketches, if nothing more than to have her recommit to that big panel.

John